Ever since she married the Prince of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, has bounced around his various country homes, from Aberdeen to Gloucestershire, but has never taken her eyes off the main real estate prize – Windsor Castle.
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Sources close to Camilla say she’s made no secret of the fact that the spectacular castle is her favourite of the royal residences. They add that she was pushing to move in while her husband performs the duties of King Regent for his ailing mother, the Queen.
However, according to fresh reports out of the UK, Camilla, 73, may have been thwarted by her stepson, Prince William. The Duke of Cambridge is said to be moving his family into Windsor Castle while they hunt for a country home that’s closer to London than their current Sandringham pile, Anmer Hall.
“Wills has pipped Camilla at the post – it looks like he’s more likely to get the Queen’s go ahead at this point,” says the insider. “Camilla is furious. She is married to the next king, and her plea for Windsor has been tossed out by the Queen with very little thought.”
Palace insiders tell New Idea the timing is curious, given rising whispers that Charles, 72, is planning to renege his word that Camilla would never be Queen, only Princess Consort, when he eventually succeeds the throne.
“This is a betrayal to the very tough decision Charles and the Queen made together when he decided to marry Camilla after Princess Diana’s death,” explains a source. “The public made it clear that replacing Diana as their future Queen with Camilla would not be acceptable. But Charles is getting stubborn in his old age.”
Indeed, public opinion is still holding strong. In May, a poll revealed that just 13 per cent of Brits would approve of Camilla becoming Queen, while 41 per cent approve of a Princess Consort role. A further 28 per cent still believe the mother of two shouldn’t have a title at all.
WATCH: Will Camilla become ‘Princess Consort’ when Charles is King? (Article continues after video)
“There are some people who will never warm to Camilla,” royal author Phil Dampier tells New Idea exclusively.
“The problem is [she and Charles] are now looking old compared to William and Kate, whose popularity has soared. All hopes are now being pinned on the Cambridges really. Charles is sandwiched between them and the living legend The Queen, so it’s difficult for him.”
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